Note: Matthew’s final performance as Billy in the UK/Ireland Tour production of the show was on 3-Nov-2016 at the Bristol Hippodrome.
Debut: February 27, 2016 (Theatre Royal Plymouth)
Total Performances as Billy: 62.5 (Includes 5 partial shows credited @.5 each)
Matthew Lyons was 11-years-old upon his debut as Billy. He is from Yeadon, a town within the City of Leeds metropolitan borough, in West Yorkshire, England, where he was then a pupil at Queensway Primary School.
From the age of five-years-old, Matthew trained for about six years at the West Yorkshire School of Performing Arts (WYSPA) before booking the title role in BETM. He first attended a dance class there with a friend and was soon studying ballet, modern, tap and jazz.
His teachers there, upon the announcement of him being cast as one of the Billys, had this to say: “We cannot express how incredibly proud we are of this amazingly talented young man! Matthew puts his heart and soul into everything he does and he has been training incredibly hard over the past few years to reach his goal.
When Matty fist started dance classes we could see he had something special and since then we have seen him grow into a wonderful young man. We are all so happy we could be a part of his incredible journey to make his dreams come true.”
Previous to BETM, Matthew appeared in Matthew Bourne’s production of “Lord of the Flies” at the Bradford Alhambra Theatre in December of 2014.
About that experience, Matthew had this to say in an interview just before Lord of The Flies opened in Bradford: “It’s been a really, really fun experience and I am over the moon to go on the stage with the shows.”
If Matthew thought that experience was fun as an ensemble member of a show, one can’t wait to hear his impression after carrying the three-hour BETM show on his small shoulders.
Matthew was the last of the four UK/Ireland tour Billys to debut. He did his first performance as Billy on 27-Feb-2016 and in doing so became the 127th actor to play the role worldwide.
On 11-Mar-2016, Matthew’s “Meet the Tour Billys” video was released:
Learn a bit more about Matthew in this quick-fire interview with him:
Credit: Videos on this page are by Billy Elliot The Musical
Credit: Photo by Alistair Muir
After 62.5 performances (including 5 partial shows), Matthew’s final performance as Billy was on 3-Nov-2016.
For more information about Matthew visit:
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